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Trams on track for new life with Harold Park revamp

Amy McNeilage

A history of the Rozelle tram depot

A selection of images showing the history of the former Rozelle tram depot in the past, present and future visions. It was the second largest tram depot to service the Sydney network running at peak capacity of approximately 200 trams from 1918, until its closure in 1958

WHAT was previously a padlocked playground for Sydney's audacious graffiti artists is set to become a bustling retail complex.

The former Rozelle tram depot at Glebe has been desolate for decades. The last tram left the tracks in 1961 and the site has more recently become a derelict haunt for trespassing young locals, graffiti artists and amateur photographers.

With barely an inch of blank wall space, the heritage-listed warehouse is perhaps one of Sydney's most vibrant graffiti canvasses.

But the clean-up has already started for the tram sheds to become the centrepiece of the Harold Park development.

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The nearby grandstands and racetrack have been demolished to make way for 1250 new apartments and terraces and almost four hectares of public parks and open space. The only thing left at the site is the tram sheds, which will become commercial and community space, spanning about 1½ football fields.

Once surrounded by cigarette butts, empty alcohol bottles and spray cans, six heavily vandalised trams now sit alone in a corner at the abandoned depot.

One will remain at the site as a feature. One will be restored and become a community shed at Bourke Street Park in Woolloomooloo.

But the other four are struggling to find a new home.

The City of Sydney called for expressions of interest to restore or reuse the vintage trams but none of the submissions was deemed suitable. They will now be taken to an undisclosed site where they will remain for up to three years while the city continues its pursuit.

"Options could include restaurant or heritage trams to run on Sydney's new light rail network, or adapting the trams to create new play equipment, kiosks or community shed projects," a City of Sydney spokeswoman said. As for the graffiti, the developer says there is a chance some of the urban ''artwork'' could be kept as a feature.

"There's some very talented work in there," the development director, Stuart Penklis, said.

It is that very work that has made it tough to fend off trespassers.

"It's been a real challenge to secure them," Mr Penklis said. "Before it became a construction site, you'd walk in there and there'd be a photo shoot on.

"You had your graffiti artists, people who were interested in photography and photoshoots and then you just had vandals and people chasing copper from old cabling."

Developer Mirvac has fenced off the site and hired 24-hour security.

But Mr Penklis is still reluctant to declare it impenetrable.

"I wouldn't say it's impossible because that would prompt people to challenge it," he said. "But we've done everything we could possibly do to secure it to protect the heritage."